I love a BBQ, but especially a BBQ at the end of summer because it’s as if everyone feels the sun setting earlier, the light taking on that fall-ish feeling and so, they savor lingering outside with a beer around a fire pit with a plate of good food.

Ivan is convinced that I put addictive drugs in this pasta, but I assured him that it is only bacon. But then again, maybe bacon could be considered a drug? Crowd pleasing can be made very easy with a hefty dose of pig. This much, I have learned.

For the Recipe, click here:

Pepper and Pea Pasta Salad with Bacon

I love Easter. I would say that besides Thanksgiving, it is my favorite holiday. Maybe it’s because my mom never made me wear knickers like the ones my brothers wore to church or because wearing an Easter hat and little white gloves made me feel grown up. Or maybe it’s because after a long New England winter, the sign of green buds on trees and the peaty smell of melting earth just made everything feel full of promise.

I love that Easter has no stressful traditions. Who doesn’t love a good, healthily competitive Easter Egg Hunt? Seriously… can you really get stressed about a game?

I am hosting Easter Brunch and have come up with a menu that allows me to prepare a lot ahead of time. I’m attempting to avoid being covered in flour and eggs and panic minutes before my guests arrive. So here’s a starter with instructions on what to do ahead. More to come tomorrow.

For the Recipe, click here:

Smoky Deviled Eggs with Bacon and Crispy Shallots